Bay of Pigs Invasion

     The Bay of Pigs Invasion, supported by the U.S. government, was an unsuccessful plan to oust Cuban leader Fidel Castro. A Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) proposal to train Cuban exiles in Guatemala for an invasion of the island nation was approved by U.S. president Dwight D. Eisenhower (1). The Cuban brigade consisting of about 1,500 Cuban exiles, landed in the Bay of Pigs (Bahía de Cochinos) on April 17, 1961. Having no additional supplies or air cover, some 1,200 soldiers surrendered to Castro’s army within 2 days. Air cover was approved until last minute, since Kennedy had backed out. Castro had long awaited an attack, witnessing the force being trained in Guatemala over television and had spies infiltrating the Cuban population in Miami, Florida. In response to these plots, Castro brought together known dissidents across Cuba, making the possibilities for an internal uprising very slim. Due to such poor planning and execution, the invasion caused severe criticism to President Kennedy as well as former president Dwight D. Eisenhower at home, also harming the CIA’s reputation. The CIA Inspector General’s report placed responsibility for failure at the highest levels of U.S. government for faultily planning the attack, lacking contingency plans, and failing to provide adequate resources to the operation. The Cuban army easily defeated the rebels and by April 20^th most were either killed or captured. Castro strengthened his reign in Cuba by taking steps to further silence his critics. His international ranking thrived significantly, having defeated the United States (2). The success of Castro served to encourage other revolutionaries and opponents, who opposed the static societies across Hispanic America. The Bay of Pigs invasion provoked anti-U.S. demonstrations in Latin America and Europe, and further embittered U.S.-Cuban relations permanently, continuing to isolate Castro and encourage his acrid rule.

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(1) American History, s.v. "Bay of Pigs invasion,"  http://americanhistory.abc-clio.com/(accessed May 28, 2013.)

(2) Encyclopædia Britannica Online School Edition, s.v. "Bay of Pigs invasion," (accessed May 29, 2013)